Face Reality
by SassyCop
Summary: Do people have to give up their illusions and face reality to keep their lives from being empty and meaningless? Or can illusions be a better reality for some? Happy #Lietomelives day!
1. Chapter 1

**Here is my contribution to the "Who's Afraid of Virginia Tech?" #Lietomelives day celebration! I'm not overly pleased with what I've come up with, but those of you who enjoy a 'case type' story should like it-I hope… **

Garrett sat in the living room talking with Nathan while Megan took an empty tray to the kitchen.

"You have any plans for Spring Break?" Garrett asked as he set his drink on the table.

"I thought about going fishing, but Hannah has no interest in that. We'll probably do what she wants and paint the bathroom." Nathan shook his head. He and Garrett both laughed. "I'm not as lucky as you. You have a built in fishing mate." At Garrett's strange look Nathan added "Megan told me about your son. I didn't know you had any kids."

Garrett sat with his mouth open in surprise. Before he could say anything in response, Megan entered the room.

"I have brownies for dessert! I hope you saved some room for them." She smiled at the two men as she sat the tray of brownies in front of them on the coffee table.

Hannah came back from the bathroom right as Megan set the tray down. "Did I hear someone say brownies?"

* * *

Garrett and Megan walked Nathan and Hannah to the door and said their good nights. Megan walked back through the kitchen, turned off the lights, and headed up the stairs. Garrett set the house alarm and followed her up.

Once they were both in the bedroom, Garrett stopped and stared at her. She noticed him in the mirror. "Honey? What's wrong?"

Garrett walked toward her. "You told Nathan we had a son?" He shook his head. Before Megan could even answer he yelled, "Why would you do that?!" He grabbed a pillow off the bed and a blanket from the chair.

Megan followed him around trying to explain. "Garrett! Garrett! I just- it just came up-" She realized he was going to leave the room. "Where are you going? Why are you mad?"

Garrett turned to her with anger on his face. "I'm sleeping on the couch! And you know damn well why I'm mad!" He turned and walked out, slamming the door as he went.

Megan sat on the bed and cried.

* * *

Megan woke to the smell of coffee. She did her morning routine in the bathroom, put on her robe, and then made her way downstairs. She hoped Garrett had calmed down. She didn't like it when he was mad at her.

She saw him at the kitchen table reading the Sunday paper. He didn't look up when she entered. Megan got her coffee and leaned against the counter. "If you want, I could make you a big breakfast…"

Garrett looked up at her. "I had some yogurt, so I'm not hungry." He watched her for a few seconds. "Megan." He closed the paper. "Come sit down. I need to tell you something."

She walked over and sat down at the table next to him. Garrett reached out and took hold of her hand. She felt nauseous and her heart rate increased. He didn't look angry but she couldn't tell what was wrong and it scared her.

"Megan. I'm so sorry I have to tell you this, but, our son was killed in a car accident last night." Garrett watched to see how she would respond.

Megan froze. _He did not just tell me that our son is dead._ "What?" She started shaking. She looked around the room then back at Garrett. "What?!" She stood up. "That can't be! You're lying!"

He calmly stood up and stepped in front of her. He took both of her hands in his. "I'm not lying, Meg. He's dead."

"No!" She jerked and turned away from him. "No!" She grabbed her head with her hands. "You can't say that!"

Garrett tried to step closer to her but she backed away. "It's true Megan. I'm not lying to you."

She screamed at him. "You killed our son!" Megan turned and ran out of the kitchen. She went to the gun cabinet in their study. She unlocked it and took out a handgun. She stomped back into the kitchen.

Garrett was standing at the sink rinsing out his coffee cup. He turned right as Megan raised the gun and aimed it at him. "Megan! No!"

She yelled. "You killed our son!" She then pulled the trigger three times and watched as Garrett fell to the ground.

* * *

Gillian made her way into the office just before 8 AM. Anna was all ready there. As Gillian went by the desk, Anna stopped her.

"Good morning Dr. Foster."

Gillian smiled at her. "Good morning Anna. How was your weekend?"

"It was pretty good." She smiled at Gillian. "I have some messages for you. There's one from a Police Department in Virginia that sounds pretty urgent. I forwarded it to your line."

"Oh. Okay. Thanks."

Gillian went into her office and turned on her computer. She hung her coat up and walked around to sit at her desk. She saw the incoming message light blinking on her phone.

* * *

Cal came into Gillian's office just as she was hanging up the phone. She had a puzzled look on her face. "Morning darling." He walked around her desk and sat a cup of coffee in front of her. He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Who was that on the phone?" Cal went back around the desk.

Gillian looked up at him as she picked up her coffee. "A detective from the Police Department in Blacksburg, Virginia." She took a sip of her coffee. "Mmmm. This is perfect." She waited for him to sit down. "They have a case they would like for us to consult on."

Cal thought for a second. "Blacksburg? Isn't that where Virginia Tech is?"

Gillian nodded her head. "Yes, in fact the case involves two professors from the university."

Cal sighed. "That's like four hours away. Can we do it remotely?"

Gillian shook her head. "I don't think so." Gillian took another sip of her coffee. "They have a wife in custody for shooting her husband. All she's saying is that she shot him because he killed their son. The husband is in the hospital. He's paralyzed from the neck down and has a collapsed lung. Evidently he has regained consciousness a few times but they aren't able to communicate with him well enough to understand what happened. They can't find any evidence that the couple had a son. The husband is indicating there was no son, but the wife is insisting there was and that her husband killed him."

"And they want us to figure out who's lying?" When she nodded he hopped up from the chair. "Pack a bag love." He smiled and waggled his eyebrows. "We're off for an 'over-nighter' in Blacksburg."

Gillian smiled and shook her head. She couldn't believe that no one in the office had picked up on their new relationship. Cal's declaration of love a few weeks back, while not surprising, did send her into a bit of a panic. Her relationships tended to crash and burn. She was afraid to admit her feelings for Cal. She feared it would ruin their friendship and jeopardize the business. She knew she loved him-had for years. But knowing how you feel and being willing to admit it were two different things.

Cal had understood her panic. Evidently he had gone through the same predicament months back. Gillian was happy to have some explanation for the terrible way he treated her. Who would have thought his actions could be compared to the little boy on the playground pulling the ponytails of the little girl he fancied.

Cal had promised not to rush her, but had started courting her in earnest. The past few weeks had been a whirlwind. Dinner dates, flowers, her favorite coffee nearly every morning… He was trying hard to prove they could make a real go of things. This would be the first case they worked together since things had changed between them. Gillian was a bit nervous about it being an overnight trip. She wondered how they would handle things…

**TBC**

**The facts in this story are based on the play "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?" **


	2. Chapter 2

It was after noon when Cal and Gillian arrived in Blacksburg. Detective Darryl Scott met them at the jail.

"Garrett and Megan Williams. They've been married for 18 years. Both are professors at Tech. Mr. Williams in History and Mrs. Williams in Philosophy; both in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. No one was in the building yesterday. Spring Break started today so the campus will be a virtual ghost town. A lot of the staff will be gone too. I did talk to a secretary who said there would be a few people in today. I figure we can go there after you speak with Mrs. Williams."

Cal and Gillian both nodded their heads. Gillian spoke first. "Has Mrs. Williams given you any further information?"

"No. I think she's had some kind of psychotic break or something. She just stares at the wall now. Yesterday she was at least making eye contact. The only thing she would say was "He killed our son." Over and over." Detective Scott was obviously frustrated.

"What have you gotten from the husband?" Cal was hoping maybe they had been able to ask him some more questions.

The detective shook his head. "Nothing. She shot him three times. He took one in the lung and it collapsed. They have him on a breathing tube, which will have to stay in until the swelling in his throat goes down. One shot lodged in his spine at the base of his neck and has left him paralyzed. The third went straight through his left arm. They're keeping him sedated as much as possible. We tried to ask him yes and no questions, but it didn't go well."

Cal wondered how the detective had heard about them. "How did you hear about the Lightman Group?"

"The State Police showed up on our scene yesterday morning. We're such a small department that they usually send someone to help us out with the bigger crime scenes. They won't take over the case unless Mr. Williams dies." Detective Scott paused for a second. "The responding detective had worked a case in Northern Virginia last year. He said they used you guys and you were a tremendous help. Since we don't have a clue as to what brought all this on and we can't get anything from either the victim or the suspect, we were hoping you could help."

"Well, we'll do our level best." Cal liked this guy. He also appreciated the Detective calling them in so quickly. It was always easier to get involved before the local jurisdiction muddied the waters.

Gillian was thinking the same thing. "Thanks for calling us right away. It makes it easier on us to be in from the beginning."

"That's what the State guy said." Detective Scott led them through a security checkpoint. "Right this way. They've moved her into an interview room for us."

* * *

The first thing Cal noticed was the blank stare on Mrs. Williams' face. He leaned into Gillian. "The usual?"

Gillian nodded. "I talk. You watch." Gillian approached the table and sat across from Mrs. Williams. Cal stood in the corner of the room behind Gillian.

Gillian tried to get Mrs. Williams' attention but she just stared at her hands on the table. After a few moments, Gillian slowly reached out and placed her hand on Mrs. Williams' forearm. The woman didn't startle. She looked at Gillian's hand then raised her eyes up to Gillian's face. "Mrs. Williams, I'm Gillian Foster. Do you know where you are?"

Cal saw the brief flash of confusion before her face showed utter sadness. She looked back down at Gillian's hand as one tear fell down her cheek and landed on the table.

"He killed our son." A few tears streamed down her cheeks. Mrs. Williams' face then went blank again.

Gillian looked up at Cal. She told him with her eyes that she knew they wouldn't get anything out of her right now. Gillian patted the woman's arm and then stood up. She took one look back at Mrs. Williams before they exited the interview room.

* * *

The Detective was driving in front of them, leading them to the University. As Cal drove, Gillian stared out the window. "It's like she's stuck, somewhere in her own mind, in this endless loop of grief and sadness. I would expect her to be upset, to be showing the different emotions in the grief process or at least some outward anger at her husband. I only saw confusion for a second and then profound sadness."

Cal agreed. "I saw the same thing. Maybe she's just a little nutters. I hope someone at the University can shed some light on their relationship and maybe some information on this son she's speaking of."

Gillian looked over at him as he spoke. "Me too." She turned to look back out the window.

They decided to go to the Philosophy Department first. Jennifer, the secretary, was there and was obviously expecting them. She unlocked Megan's office for them. They looked around the small room. There weren't too many personal items, just a few pictures of her with her husband. Everything else was either school or philosophy related.

When they finished in the office, Jennifer showed them into a small conference room and told them she would let Professor Pearson know they were ready for him.

Gillian sat at the small, square table. Detective Scott and Cal both stood behind her. It looked like they were ready to pounce on this guy the second he came in. Detective Scott was a young man, late 20's Gillian would guess. It was obvious he was following Cal's lead. The testosterone was definitely not lacking in the room. "Detective Scott?" He looked in her direction. "Could you sit with me? Cal gets a better read when I ask the questions and he watches the responses. With you sitting next to me, it will give some validation to our being here." Gillian gave him a small smile.

"Uh. Sure." The detective sat down on the side of the table to her right.

Gillian glanced at Cal and saw the small smile on his face. He knew what she had just done. The professor was male and would most likely be more comfortable addressing a male authority figure in the room. By having Detective Scott sit, it would draw the focus to him and away from Cal. This would make it appear less like the Spanish Inquisition and also allow Cal to focus solely on the facial expressions of the Professor.

When the professor entered, the detective did just what they were hoping he would do. He stood up, extended his hand, and introduced himself. He then introduced Cal and Gillian. Professor Pearson sat closer to the detective, which put him directly across from Gillian. Cal stood back toward the corner where he could observe without notice.

The detective explained why they were there. The professor was obviously shocked and surprised to hear what happened. Gillian took over the questioning once they determined the professor wouldn't be able to offer any facts pertinent to the case.

"Professor Pearson how well did you know Megan Williams?"

"We've worked together the whole time she's been here. I was here for three years before she came on staff." He shook his head. "I can't believe she would ever hurt anyone, especially not her husband."

"So you're saying Megan and her husband had a good relationship?" For some reason, Gillian wasn't surprised to hear this.

"Yes. Very good. I've never seen a more loving couple." Professor Pearson was being completely truthful in his assessment.

"How much time did you spend with them away from the university?" Gillian knew sometimes people could put up a good front while in the workplace.

"Not much really. I'm several years older so we don't socialize in the same peer group. I have lunch with them occasionally and we attend the same University functions." Professor Pearson looked down and to his left while he spoke which told Cal he was recalling specific memories.

"Did you ever spend time with Megan without her husband present?" Gillian wondered if Professor Pearson would pick up on the fact that she was trying to rule out an affair between the two of them.

"Well, yes, of course. I'm the department head and she is one of the only other philosophy professors with tenure. We spend a lot of time going over course requirements and advising the Master's and Doctoral candidates." Once again, no deception leakage. And obviously no affair.

"How many other professors are in the philosophy department?"

"Two. But Professor Bell isn't here often, he only teaches two classes and it's more like a hobby for him. The other, Professor Sebesky, is about to retire in May. He's been here forever; used to be the department chair until a few years ago when I took over for him."

Gillian figured that would be the case. Megan was the only female among them. She most likely would not have had many, if any, personal conversations with them about things at home. "Thank you for your time Professor Pearson. If we need anything else from you we'll let you know."

The professor left the room. Detective Scott looked at Gillian skeptically. "Why didn't you ask him any more questions?"

Gillian smiled at him. "Because he wouldn't have had any pertinent answers for us. I think who we need to talk to is the secretary."

Detective Scott looked confused. "Okay. You want me to get her?"

Gillian nodded. "Yes, please."

Detective Scott looked at Cal as if making sure that was the right thing to do. Cal shrugged his shoulders and nodded toward Gillian indicating the detective should do as she wished. When he turned to leave, Gillian shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Should I feel insulted that our clients always look to you for guidance?" Gillian smirked at him.

Cal chuckled. "The smarter ones figure out from the get go that you run the show." He winked at her as he gave her a cheesy smile.

She smiled and blushed slightly. "Thank you." She looked down at the notebook she had sitting in front of her. She quietly said "I'll reward you for that compliment later."

Cal growled. "Aye, aye." They both smiled. So far, working a case together in their new capacity was brilliant.

* * *

The secretary was a wealth of information. Gillian was right in thinking Megan would share more personal things with her. Jennifer told them the Williams' had no children. She also told them Megan wasn't able to _have_ children. Jennifer didn't know why Megan wasn't able to conceive, but they had conversation once where Megan confided that information to her.

Jennifer also shed some light on the relationship between Megan and Garrett. Evidently her husband worshipped the ground she walked on and she felt the same way about him. Jennifer idolized their relationship. She never heard Megan say one negative word about Garrett.

Once they finished with Jennifer, they headed to the History department. Garrett's office looked similar to Megan's. He had a few personal pictures, none that included a son, amongst several historical and university related items. They were given the same information there. Everyone was shocked to hear what had happened. Everyone said they had no children, except for Nathan Andrews.

Professor Andrews explained how he and his wife, Hannah, had been at Garrett and Megan's house for dinner on Saturday. He explained a conversation he had with Megan when they were alone in the room. Megan implied they had a son, even told him the boy's name was Ian. That was the first he had heard of any children. He described the confused look on Garrett's face when he brought the son up a few hours later. Nathan never got to ask him about it because the wives had come back into the room.

* * *

It was past 5:00 pm when they finished up at the university. Detective Scott told them he had spoken to his colleague who advised they would be doing a search warrant at the Williams residence first thing in the morning. He gave them the address for Garrett and Megan's house and said he would meet them there at 8:00am.

Cal and Gillian went to the hotel to check in. At the desk he asked about available rooms. He glanced at Gillian when the clerk asked how many they would need. She blushed a little and looked at Cal. She quietly said "just one." They put their bags in the room and then went to get something to eat. They talked briefly about the case during dinner. Gillian seemed to be lost in thought for most of the meal.

"You okay love?" Cal was pretty sure Ms. Williams' inability to conceive had everything to do with this case. He could tell Gillian felt the same way. This was a tricky topic with Gillian. Because she also wasn't able to conceive a child, cases like this tended to get under her skin.

Gillian swallowed the bite she had been chewing. "Yeah, I'm okay." She looked over at him. He was looking at her sideways with his eyebrows cocked. "Stop it Cal."

"I'm sorry darling. I just want to be sure this isn't too much for you, you know…" he waved his hand in the air indicating he wasn't going to say it out loud.

"It's not too much Cal." Gillian shoved her food around on her plate a bit and looked back at him. "It's not. I'll admit it is a little upsetting to think this whole thing could lead back to her inability to conceive somehow… but, I'm not having a problem with the case."

Cal gave a 'yeah okay, right' look. "Okay."

They were quiet for a few moments before Gillian spoke again. "It's just a little confusing. I mean the whole reason she shot him is because she thinks he killed a son they don't appear to have."

Cal agreed. "And we find one person who says a son was mentioned the night before she shoots her husband." He paused for a second. "Doesn't add up."

"No, it doesn't."

When they got back to the room, Gillian kept herself busy unpacking her toiletries and looking at the different touristy books in the room. She went into the bathroom and changed into her night-clothes. When she came out, she noticed that Cal was in pajama pants and a t-shirt. She went to the closet and put the clothes she had been wearing in her bag.

Cal realized she was nervous. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Relax love. Nothing happens until you give the go ahead." He kissed the side of her neck. He felt her relax against him and he squeezed her a little tighter.

Gillian let out a sigh of relief. She wasn't sure why she was nervous. It wasn't like she didn't want this; didn't want him. She did. She turned in his arms and put her arms around his neck. "Thank you." She kissed his lips softly. "I'm not sure what my problem is…"

Cal put his fingers over her lips. "Shh, none of that. I've had a lot more time to get used to this. And I want you to be sure before we go there. 'Cause I can all ready tell you, I won't go back. I waited a long time to tell you how I felt. I can wait for you to be ready before we go to the next level." He kissed her softly. "I love you, Gill."

Gillian felt her heart swell. This still didn't feel real to her. They had been 'them' for a little more than two weeks and she still expected to wake up and realize it was all a dream.

"It's not a dream love. You won't wake up tomorrow and find that I'm not here. I promise."

She smiled. He knew what she was thinking. She leaned into him and gave him a passionate kiss. When they parted, they were both smiling. "Thank you Cal, for being patient with me. I have a feeling it won't be much longer."

He pulled away from her and went toward one of the queen-sized beds in the room. He didn't want to assume she would sleep in the same bed with him, but he hoped she would. He climbed into bed and leaned up against the pillows.

Gillian watched him climb into bed. She wanted to hop in there with him, wanted him to hold her all night. She turned off the light in the room. The only thing on now was the television. She took a deep breath and walked to the bed he was in. She pulled back the covers and crawled in next to him. He put his arm out and she snuggled into his side. He squeezed her tightly. "Good night, Gill."

She kissed his chest and squeezed him back. "Good night."

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning Cal and Gillian had a quick breakfast at the hotel and then headed out to the Williams residence. They lived on the very edge of the Town of Blacksburg on Treetop Ridge Road. The house was very isolated. The closest neighbor was a half-mile away. They arrived just before 8:00. Detective Scott was all ready there.

At 8:15, the police had cleared the Williams' house and Cal and Gillian were allowed inside to look around. The detective had told them not to touch anything without telling him first and to stay out of the kitchen. The first thing they noticed was how neat the house was. There wasn't an item out of place, with the exception of the kitchen, which was a mess from the shooting.

As they slowly walked through each room, Cal and Gillian noticed there weren't too many pictures anywhere. They saw pictures of Garrett and Megan when they were younger posing with whom they believed were their parents. There were no siblings on either side.

Gillian stopped and stared at the grouping of pictures. Cal turned and came back to her when he realized she wasn't with him.

"Only children, older parents." She felt a twinge of sadness.

"Kindred spirits." Cal watched Gillian's face. He often wondered how someone could manage so much empathy.

"Not too many pictures of Garrett's parents. The last ones I see were at the wedding." Gillian walked a little further down the hall. "The last picture I see of Megan's father looks to be about 10 years old. The last one of her mother seems fairly recent, maybe just a few years."

Cal stopped beside her. "So, very little family, and not too many friends outside of work it would seem."

"Basically they had each other. No wonder they were so close." Gillian turned to him. "No pictures of any children, anywhere."

"Nope. I'm gonna go with, they didn't have any kids."

Gillian shook her head. "Then what happened? Why would she turn on him like that?"

Before Cal could even think about answering, Detective Scott called out to them. He had found something in the Master Bedroom.

On the top shelf in Megan's closet, they found several journals. Cal walked around the bedroom looking at items sitting out on the dresser and chest while Gillian grabbed a journal and started reading through it. She had flipped through a few of them when she noticed it. "Cal?"

He walked over to her and read over her shoulder. He read a few paragraphs. "She's talking about her son."

"Yes." Gillian flipped back a few pages and let him read over her shoulder again.

"Oh, now that's interesting." Cal took that journal from her and she picked up another one.

"She writes about a boy named Ian in all of them." Gillian flips a few more pages. "She's written about all the milestones in her son's life. But, they aren't in order. They're all dated, but the milestones are all out of order. She talks about his graduation from kindergarten and then a few months later she's writing about his 10th birthday." Gillian shook her head. "What are we missing Cal?"

Detective Scott walked out of the Master bathroom with a paper bag. He handed it to Cal. "These are prescription bottles from the medicine cabinet. All for Megan Williams. I don't recognize all of them but the ones I do know are anti-depressants."

Cal looks in the bag and then over to Gillian. "And the puzzle comes together."

* * *

Cal, Gillian, and Detective Scott sat in the living room of the Williams' house and went through the journals and the bag of prescription pills.

Cal had pulled the pill bottles out and sat them on the coffee table. He was reading the bottles to the detective who was writing all the information down. "The same doctor prescribed them all. Wellbutrin. That's for depression. Buspar. That one's for anxiety. Ambien is a sleeping pill. Those are the most recent." Cal set those aside and picked up a few others. "Paxil, Effexor, Zoloft; all for depression. Xanax, anxiety." He looked at one bottle and didn't recognize the name. "Gill?"

Gillian looked up from the journals. "Yeah?"

"Klonopin. Know what that is?"

"Anti-anxiety." She went right back to the journal.

"Thank you. That's it." Cal put them back into the evidence bag. He looked at the detective. "Someone should probably check with her psychiatrist."

Detective Scott nodded. "I put a call in to her. Just waiting for a call back."

Cal looked over at Gillian again. She was intently focused on the journal she was reading. She had a sad expression. He was worried about how this case would affect her. He walked over, sat beside her, and asked quietly "You okay?"

She looked at up at him. "Yeah. I'm fine." She looked back down at the journal and shook her head. "This is just weird. She talks about Ian as if he is real, but when she describes events around him, she's the only one involved. She mentions her husband some, but he isn't actively involved." Gillian closed the journal she had been reading. "I think this son is something she may have made up."

Cal thought for a second. It was possible. "You mean like to fill a void or something since she wasn't able to have children?"

Gillian nodded her head. "Maybe." She looked across the room. "Detective Scott?"

The detective walked toward them. "Did you find something?"

Gillian stood up and set the journal on the table. "Maybe. Are we able to speak to Mr. Williams yet?"

"Hang on, I'll give the hospital a call."

Cal piped up "He doesn't need to be able to speak, as long as he's conscious that'll do."

The detective was dialing his phone "copy that."

* * *

Forty-five minutes later, Detective Scott was leading them into Mr. Williams' hospital room.

"Mr. Williams, I'm Detective Scott. This is Dr. Cal Lightman and Dr. Gillian Foster. They're assisting us with this case." The detective then backed to the other side of the room.

Gillian came closer so Mr. Williams could see her face. She waited for Cal to get where he would be able to see before she started. "Mr. Williams, we need to ask you a few questions about your wife. We know you can't speak, but that's okay. Dr. Lightman and I are trained in reading micro-expressions, so we'll be able to understand your answers."

Mr. Williams' face relaxed. He had gotten worked up when the police had tried to talk him the day of the shooting. He wasn't able to tell them anything and they were asking the wrong 'yes or no' questions. He hoped these people would do a better job.

Gillian saw his face relax. "We know that Megan shot you and we know she said it was because you killed your son." Mr. Williams' eyes rolled. "Hang on. We found Megan's journals in her closet." Mr. Williams flashed surprise and then shame. "That embarrasses you." She paused and looked at Cal. He nodded at her and then gestured for her to keep going.

"We know that Megan isn't able to have children." There was sadness on his face now. "Ian wasn't real, was he Mr. Williams?" His eyes closed and when he opened them his face showed complete resignation. Gillian kept going. "Did Megan create Ian to help with the fact that she couldn't have children?" Sadness again.

Gillian looked over at Cal. Suddenly it hit her. "You and her therapist were the only ones who knew about Ian right?" Mr. Williams nodded almost imperceptibly. "You were embarrassed when I said we had found the journals. No one was supposed to find out about Ian, were they?"

Gillian looked away for a moment and thought back to the conversation they had with Nathan Andrews the day before. She looked back at him. "Megan told Nathan about Ian." Anger and then shame. "Was that the deal? She could keep the illusion of Ian as long as she didn't tell anyone?" Sadness and then contempt.

Cal had given up watching Mr. Williams. He was now staring at Gillian. He could see the wheels turning in her head. He could all ready see the sadness on her face. Empathy in spades. She couldn't stop the empathy she felt any more than he could stop seeing things on people's faces.

"You were trying to protect her. As long as she said nothing about Ian, she could hold onto him as her son. But when she told Nathan, you had to shatter her illusion."

Mr. Williams closed his eyes. Tears ran down the side of his face.

"You told her that Ian had died to try to bring her back into reality. She saw that as you killing him and she acted out against you." Mr. Williams showed sadness and regret. His tears were still falling. Gillian showed her own sadness. "I'm so sorry Mr. Williams." He closed his eyes. "I'm so, so sorry."

* * *

Cal and Gillian followed Detective Scott back to the police station. He wanted them to talk to Megan Williams and see if they could get her to admit to their theory. Yes they had gotten the story, so to speak, from Garrett Williams. But at the moment he couldn't speak, which left some holes in their case.

Mrs. Williams was waiting in the interview room when Cal and Gillian entered. Gillian took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She sat across from Megan and Cal stood in the same corner he had been in before.

"Megan. My name is Gillian. We talked yesterday, do you remember that?"

Megan looked up at her. There was no recognition on her face.

"Do you know why you're here Megan?" Gillian wanted to see if she had really come out of the fog a bit.

Megan showed shame followed immediately by sadness.

"Do you remember what happened on Sunday? In your kitchen, with you and Garrett?"

Megan showed fear and her head shot up to look at Gillian.

Gillian wasn't sure what the fear was about, but she could guess. "I saw Garrett a little while ago; at the hospital."

Megan's eyes went wide. "He's alive?" Tears of relief pooled in her eyes.

"Yes. And he's worried about you."

Megan covered her face with her hands. "I hurt him!" Megan started sobbing.

Gillian looked over her shoulder at Cal. He gave her a reassuring look and she turned back to Megan. After Megan calmed down, Gillian tried again. "Can you tell me what happened, Megan?"

Megan put her hands on the table and looked back up at Gillian. She bit her lower lip and started shaking her head. She then brought her hand in front of her mouth. Cal and Gillian recognized her self-hushing behavior. Megan was trying desperately to keep herself quiet.

"Megan. I know about Ian." Gillian said this very quietly. She wasn't sure what kind of reaction she was going to get.

Megan looked down in shame. She started crying quietly then whispered, "I broke the promise."

Gillian was confused. "The promise?"

"I promised Garrett I would never speak of Ian to anyone if he would just let me keep him. I promised. I promised." Megan was retreating again.

Gillian didn't want to lose her. "Megan. I understand how you feel; why you created Ian."

Megan showed contempt. "Don't patronize me. You don't understand. No one understands!"

Gillian took a deep breath. She didn't believe in sharing personal information during a case but she identified so strongly with the loss this woman felt. "No Megan. I _do_ understand." She waited for Megan to look up at her. "I know _exactly_ how you feel." Gillian could feel the emotions building in her chest.

Megan studied Gillian's face for a few seconds. "You do. You do know." Megan sobbed suddenly. "I've ruined everything. I hurt Garrett. I was so stupid!" She took a deep breath "I just snapped. It was like I had no control. He didn't deserve that." She covered her face with her hands. After a few moments she calmed down. She looked up at Gillian. "I'm sorry for you. It's so unfair. It's just so unfair…" she put her head in her arms on the table and cried.

Gillian was barely controlling her own emotions. She reached out and put her hand on Megan's arm. "I'm so sorry for you too."

Cal felt a lump in his throat. He hated seeing Gillian like this.

**TBC**


End file.
